Session Twenty-One: The Man of Law's Tale

Another Army

The Dauntless Sir Maximillian

The now Baroness Josephine asks that her mother’s body be taken to the crypts for now. This raises hackles among the company—especially with Renee, who fears that placing the body of a known Chaos worshipper and necromancer in a place with ready corpses may not be wise. They are outvoted, alas, and Baroness Louise’s body is taken away.

Baron Stephane, Lord Alexandre, and Sir Maximillian arrive in the receiving hall and report that the remaining bloody skeletons all fell as one mere moments before. They are all brought up to speed by the company and by Baroness Josephine. Baron Stephane congratulates her in his usual phlegmatic way.

Before much else can be sorted out, one of the castle servants runs into the hall and asks for Baroness Louise. He is baffled at the expressions that meet his request, but quickly recovers and tells Lady Josephine that there is a peasant army at the gates, demanding entrance.

Everyone in the hall goes out to the castle courtyard, where they find both the castle’s servants and the remainder of the company’s swiftly mustered army huddled for protection. The company follows Baroness Josephine up to the ramparts, where they spy a sizeable peasant force from the village of Paix, which counts Guillaumette, Henri the innkeeper, and Lady Valerie among their number.

Lady Valerie reports that she had snuck out of her castle to follow her brother and her father to Maisy. On the way, she encountered the peasant army who, fearful that warfare had broken out in the valley, had mustered out to Maisy to beg them to stop. The peasants are relieved to learn that Grandcamp marched to Maisy to aid them with a hidden Chaos threat, and all are glad to hear that they have excised Khorne’s cancerous influence and have saved the valley from further intrigues and bloodshed.

Lady Josephine orders the gates open and welcomes in the outsiders with open arms. She asks Ines to open the larders for a victory feast, and commands her staff to bring tables and chairs out into the courtyard to seat the full assemblage. The company notes some physical similarities between Lady Valerie and Ines the cook, which confirms their suspicious. Ines, for her part, quickly makes for the kitchens.

The Victory Feast

Henri the innkeeper reunites with the group and congratulates them on their heroic work. He says that he heard the fighting had started, “I knew it was your work, good masters, and that of the Lady, putting another wrong to right! Why, I said, considering your brave deeds in other places, this was likely but a trifle. And I see I was right!”

Garnier and Pierre do good work patching up the surviving peasants, priests, and knights who were injured in the battle beneath Castle Maisy.

Meanwhile Sabina finds Constance, who has ensconced herself behind a wagon in the courtyard’s corner. The two women discuss whether or not Baron Stephane will still blame her for Lord Arthur’s death, as well as whether he will execute her on the spot. Sabina promises to bring Constance food and tells her the layout of the castle, so that she can hide in the event that Baron Stephane comes looking for her.

In the meantime, the tables for the feast are laid out, and food and wine are brought up from the kitchens. The company sits in a place of honor, at the same table as the baron and baroness, Lord Alexandre, Lady Valerie, Sir Maximillian, and Dame Jeanne. Sir Maximillian becomes enraptured in Magnus’ recounting of the battle with Baroness Louise, becoming so excited and loud that he has to be shushed a few times by the new Baroness.

The baroness then makes a simple, but moving speech, in which she says that her mother was behind many of the intrigues in the valley. She sees no reason to follow in her mother’s footsteps, renounces all things Chaos, and promises to work with Baron Stephane to maintain peace in the valley. This is met with much fanfare and applause.

The guests fall to eating and drinking, and several of the company imbibe far too much of the valley’s imported wine. Throughout the feast, several important conversations occur, which include:

• Magnus asking Sir Maximillian if he has “a shot” with Baroness Josephine. Sir Maximillian says that perhaps Magnus does, but he also needs to remember that he just killed the baroness’ mother in single combat. Sir Maximillian suggests that Magnus give her time to grieve.
• Sir Maximillian having a quick discussion with Baron Stephane. Garnier happens to overhear the knight say words to the effect of, “I think I’ve found him!”
• Several of the company note Lady Valerie in an animated discussion with Baroness Josephine, during which both steal glances at Sir Henri.
• Andre laments not having a boat and asks if there is any way for him to get one. This baffles Frieda, who says that the company is quite far away from the sea. Andre begins to talk about all things boat and ship related, which interests Maurice and draws some slight mockery from Garnier.
• The most important conversation that occurs, however, is the one involving the murder of Lord Arthur. The company has sufficient evidence to blame Baron Stephane, but not nearly enough to convict him. Some of the company feel that it would be sufficient to abandon the entire business and leave the valley in the morning. Others say that they can’t get paid without reporting in, and so feel that they must report to the baron and baroness. The company ultimately resolves to let Garnier do the talking, to blame the entire thing on Baroness Louise, and to get the hell out of the valley while they still can.
• It soon becomes clear that Baron Stephane intends not to further persecute Constance—at least not tonight. Sabina gives her the all-clear and offers Constance a place with the company. Constance, having had plenty of awful experiences in the valley of late, eagerly accepts.

As the feast winds down, Henri the innkeeper tells the company that he has secured rooms for them at the Truce Inn, if they wish to sleep there. He then bids them goodnight and goes off to his own room. The company tells Baron Stephane that they wish to report their findings to him, and he replies that they may do this tomorrow morning. He leaves soon after with his son and daughter. Baroness Josephine excuses herself sometime later, and soon, the rest of the guests begin drifting away toward their homes.

Magnus' Crush, the Now Baroness Josephine of Maisy

Nocturnal Activities

A very drunk Andre leads a very drunk Maurice down to the edge of the lake, and begins unmooring a boat. They are soon joined by a less drunk, but annoyed Garnier, who is worried that his companions’ nightly sailing jaunt will get them into unnecessary trouble. Maurice explains that they won’t get in trouble, and it soon becomes clear to Garnier that Maurice thinks the boat actually belongs to Andre.

Garnier joins his two drunken companions in a brief tour of the lake. During this trip, Andre begins searching the boat for loot. When he is noticed, he says that he “left something behind” on his last trip, and is trying to find it. Maurice, ever the helpful one, rummages around and soon discovers a small wooden container stuck to the underside of a rowing seat with a daub of tar. Opening it reveals a bright and gleaming fishhook, which he gives to Andre.

Magnus, utterly besotted with Baroness Josephine, remains in Castle Maisy once all the other revelers have left. Paranoid that the new baroness will be attacked, and desperate to win her admiration, he vows to camp out in the hallway in front of her door all night to guard her against plots and intrigues. He falls asleep three minutes later.

The rest of the company go to their rooms at the Truce Inn and go to sleep. All is well except…

In the middle of the night, Frieda wakes Sabina and points to their roommate, Renee. Frieda quietly says that she woke up a short time ago, and that Renee is doing something weird.

The two women observe Renee, who is muttering in her sleep and tracing her left hand in the air above her head. Frieda and Sabina have a quick discussion about whether or not to wake her—and if doing so would be bad luck. Sabina ultimately decides to awaken Renee while Frieda looks on.

Renee is jostled awake from a wonderful dream, in which she is riding across beautiful landscapes astride the golden horse of the Yellow Knight. She blinks and finds Frieda and Sabina looking down at her. Renee answers their questions to the best of her abilities. 

The three women are so disturbed by this incident that they travel to the Shrine of Saint Jacqueline ask the priests there for help. Their questions are answered in a not particularly useful and vague way, but the high priest does anoint Renee with holy oil to protect her from the Ruinous Powers. Feeling slightly better, the three women return to their room and sleep the rest of the night through, without incident.

A Final Report

The next morning, the whole company (apart from Magnus, but including Constance, who waits outside), travel to Castle Grandcamp to report to Baron Stephane. They find him in his receiving hall, along with his daughter and son and a very expectant Sir Maximillian. The knight is annoyed that Magnus is not among the company, but is told of his location and is quickly given leave to go and fetch him by Baron Stephane.

While they wait, Garnier approaches to give the company’s report to the baron. He has recently borrowed the still bloody handkerchief, donated by the Baron, that was recently used to bind Andre’s wound. He prominently displays this handkerchief as he tells the baron the company’s findings. He says that the company believes that Baroness Louise likely used her terrible Chaos powers to murder Lord Arthur and bring the valley to the brink of war. He locks eyes with the baron and is pleased to see that the lord nods once in understanding.

“Well then, I suppose we may allow the matter to drop,” says Baron Stephane, before ordering the company to be paid.

Did the Baron Just Get Away with Murder? Maybe!

Goodbye to Maisy

Magnus awakens on the hallway floor outside of Baroness Josephine’s room. He is bemused to find that both the baroness and her lady in waiting are staring down at him in confusion.

“I just found him like this.”

Magnus explains what he is doing in the castle and once again confesses his love to the baroness, who seems less than impressed. He is saved from being rebuffed by the timely arrival of Sir Maximillian, who comes roaring into Castle Maisy looking for him.

The knight all but drags Magnus out into the castle courtyard and demands to know why the hell he isn’t in Grandcamp with the others. Magnus once again explains his actions, drawing a rueful sigh from the knight.

Sir Maximillian says that he is impressed with Magnus’ bravery, forthrightness, and battle prowess and has decided to make him his squire. He says that he wanted to make a big announcement in front of everyone in Grandcamp, but that this will have to do. He also says that he knows that Magnus is going to continue on pilgrimage, for now, but that Magnus can start his training once he gets back.

Sir Maximillian says that Magnus should come with him to Grandcamp, to make everything official. Magnus says he has one last thing to do and runs off to have a final conversation with Baroness Josephine. He tells her of his recent good fortune, that he will return to the valley soon, and that he wishes permission to write to her of his exploits while he is on the road. The baroness replies that she will receive letters from Magnus, but only if they are written in his own hand. Magnus, who is unlettered, is undaunted by this task and leaves with a song in his heart and the company’s wages from Maisy in his pouch.

As the knight and future squire ride around the lake to Grandcamp, Magnus asks if he can keep the borrowed horse.

Elevations and Rewards

Magnus and Sir Maximillian arrive at Grandcamp, and Magnus’ position as Sir Maximillian’s squire is made official.

Not to be outdone, Lady Valerie then rises and says that, with both her father’s and Baroness Josephine’s permission, she has decided to offer Sir Henri a position in her household as her first knight. The baron comments that his daughter has done well to select a “man of quality” for this position, while Lord Alexandre merely smirks in reply.

Sir Henri is overcome with this gift and is profuse in his promises and praises to his new liege lady. Garnier interrupts him and pulls Sir Henri to one side, where he tells the knight to acquire Lady Valerie’s colors as quickly as possible. Garnier explains that this will make any future encounters on the road go much more easily in the company’s favor, since Sir Henri has the authority of a noble house on his side.

Sir Henri asks for the standard of House Coligny and is granted it. In addition, Baron Stephane offers to provide a horse to anyone in the company who does not have one. This turns out to be a double-edged sword, as there are far more members of the company than he was expecting—including, ironically, Constance. It does, however, permit him to get rid of his least valuable horses and clear out some room in his stables for some new foals, so there is that.

Sir Henri is provided with a powerful warhorse, as befits his new station. He gifts his original horse, Brielle, to Henri the innkeeper, who is baffled at the knight’s generosity and is unsure what to do with such a fine steed. Despite this, he promises Sir Henri that he will take very good care of her.

Sir Henri's New Heraldry

To Castle Carcassonne

The company at last leaves the valley of Grandcamp-Maisy and travels eastward to the next stop on their journey—the fortress and military encampment of Castle Carcassonne. Henri the innkeeper excitedly tells the company about the Shrine of the Sword, which is inside the fortress, and which honors all the unknown soldiers who have fallen in defense of the region.

The company reaches the fields outside of Carcassonne shortly before sunset. They find the fields filled with encamped soldiery and mercenary companies, as well as tinkers, smiths, shops, camp followers, fortune tellers, musicians, and the like. They soon grab a section of field for themselves and set up their own camp. Henri the innkeeper prepares one of his delicious meals while Andre goes out wandering.

Castle Carcassonne is built near to a tributary that flows north toward the Brienne. Andre finds a quiet spot on the shores of this river, ties a bit of string to his newly acquired fishhook, and tries his hand at a little fishing. His attempt draws the amusement of a nearby fisherman, who suggests that Andre won’t catch anything with just a bit of metal and string. He needs a proper pole first!

Andre calls the fisherman’s bluff and offers him three silver to purchase the man’s own pole. The man happily accepts, hands over the pole, picks up another one from the long grass at his side, and resumes fishing. Meanwhile, Andre ties the hook onto the string of his new pole, baits it, and casts it into the water.

The second the hook hits the water a fish takes the bait. Andre struggles against the large fish, but quickly pulls it to shore, to the bafflement and jealousy of the fisherman. Andre catches four more fish almost as quickly, causing the fisherman to throw up his hands, pack up his things, and leave the riverside.

Andre, now convinced that his fishhook is enchanted, takes his catches and his new pole, and returns to camp.

An Old Friend Returns

As Andre returns with his fish, several of the company see a knight riding by on a familiar looking horse. After some conversation, they become convinced that the horse is none other than Ambrose, the horse of Sir Jean-Marc, though they are also sure that the knight riding Ambrose is not Sir Jean-Marc. The company also notices that Ambrose has numerous superficial injuries.

Garnier calls out Sir Jean-Marc’s name and gets no response. He then calls out “Jules,” Ambrose’s original name. The horse reacts and, upon seeing the company, trots over to them. His knightly rider is surprised by this, and asks the company how it is that his horse seems to recognize them. The company offers the knight to rest a while and share their meal, for that, they say, is a long story.

The knight graciously accepts, dismounts Ambrose, and introduces himself as Sir Matthias. He then doffs his helm, revealing that he is, at least in the face, a physical twin to Nikodemas de la Tour, the Yellow Knight.

Sir Nikodemas, or Sir Matthias?

Session Twenty: The Man of Law's Tale

The Battle for Castle Maisy

The rag-tag army, working its way through culvert and basement, are suddenly set upon on all sides by a horde of blood-drenched skeletons. Andre, Garnier, and Sabina, as well as the baron, his son, Sir Maximillian, and the other knights, give a good accounting of themselves, sundering the undead on every side. The accompanying priests and serfs acquit themselves as best as they can but, lacking combat skill, many of them fall to the awful skeletons.

Sabina soon sees an opening in the ranks of the ravenous undead and urges Andre and Garnier to follow her upstairs. Garnier, being unusually fleet of foot, outpaces both her and Andre in mere seconds, and soon finds the staircase leading up to the main levels of the castle.

The Bloody Undead Beneath Castle Maisy

Louise, Knight of Khorne

The baroness, still laughing, mocks Josephine for her kind heart and her sensitivity. She says that Josephine would have long since known about the shrine and about her family’s long devotion to Khorne had she been able to quash her “sympathetic impulses.” Since Josephine was unable to serve Khorne as one of his faithful, she is now doomed to be yet one more sacrifice laid before his throne.

The baroness strides forward as ten tendrils of bloody mist coalesce from out of the air and begin to pour into one of the ten suits of armor on display throughout the room. Realizing what is about to occur, Magnus rushes forward and smashes apart the nearest suit of armor, preventing at least one of the bloody mist tendrils from occupying it. He orders the knights to protect Lady Josephine as the rest of the armor quickens and draws swords.

The baroness, now roaring in anger and challenge, spreads her arms wide and invokes the name of Khorne. Blood seeps through her pores and solidifies, transforming into bloodred and organic-looking plate armor. A long streamer of blood flows down one of her arms and out of her hand, quickly taking the shape of an evil-looking great sword.

“You wish to enter another contest with me, Magnus Cadia? I swear that you will not find your belly so pleasantly full after this encounter. Your skull is not fit to prop up my master’s throne. BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!”

Magnus raises his spear as the baroness charges him.

Baroness Louise in Her Blood Armor

In the Shrine of Khorne

The rest of the company soon grow concerned that something has happened to Lady Josephine, her knights, and Magnus. Leaving the priests behind to sanctify the wretched altar of Khorne, Sir Henri leads the company up the stairs and out into the castle proper. There, he finds the castle’s inhabitants in a riot of panic and confusion. The guards and laborers give conflicting stories, but it soon becomes apparent that a great battle is being waged in the depths of the castle, while another fight seems to be happening in the reception hall.

Sir Henri leads the company to the reception hall, where they find the doors closed and locked. As they approach, one of the castle’s stewards lays hands on an iron door handle and attempts to pry the door open, only getting painful burns on his hands and arms for his troubles.

Pierre tends to the injured steward while the rest of the company tries to figure out how to get inside the reception hall. They are soon joined by Dame Jeanne, who demands to know what they’re doing here and what is happening.

In the confusion, three separate plans are formulated. Pierre asks Frieda to see if she can pick the lock on the reception hall door. Dame Jeanne is asked to fetch several horses from the stables, in the hopes that their combined strength will be able to force the doors open. Lastly, an astute Jules says that he thinks the windows of the reception hall are narrow, full-length, and made of stained glass. He says that, if that’s the case, it might be easy enough to force the leaden frame of the window inward, allowing entrance.

Sir Henri, Jim, Jules, Maurice, and Renee quickly exit the castle and try to find the reception hall from the outside. Dame Jeanne hares off to the stables. Meanwhile, Frieda quietly tells Pierre—who is still treating the injured steward—that she has successfully unlocked the door.

Skulls for the Skull Throne!

The four knights form a box around Lady Josephine—much to the latter’s annoyance and defend her as best as they can from the animated armor. Magnus goes on the defensive, using his shield and spear skills to avoid and deflect Baroness Louise’s deadly blade. Though they are able to hold their own against the baroness and the possessed armor, they are badly outnumbered, and they fear it won’t be long before they are overwhelmed.

But then, one of the windows of the reception hall smashes inward, revealing Sir Henri and the others. Sir Henri leaps into the fray, trading mighty blows with one of the animated suits of armor. Jim, Jules, Renee, and Maurice support the dauntless knight with a hail of well-aimed arrows, quickly bringing down a number of the hollow and blasphemous remnants of Maisy’s brave knights.

It is then that the main door to the reception hall opens, and Pierre and Frieda enter, only to quickly leave again. Pierre insists that he isn’t leaving his companions—he has a plan! This plan entails running out to the castle courtyard, where most of the populace of the castle have been gathered for there protection. Upon arrival, Pierre and Frieda see Dame Jeanne leading two large and powerful warhorses into the castle. They join her, with Pierre and Frieda taking one horse and Dame Jeanne taking the other.

Back in the reception hall, it is still anyone’s fight. The knights around Lady Josephine have been sorely pressed, and Magnus is struggling to hold his own against the baroness. Sir Henri has given no ground, but has gained no advantage in his duel with the armor. The rest of the defenders are worried about firing into melee, for fear that they will injure their companions.

A Suit of Animated Armor

The Lady is With You, Magnus!

The sound of whinnies and hoofbeats announces the arrival of Dame Jeanne, Pierre, and Frieda. Dame Jeanne leaps off her horse and rushes to the aid of her fellow knights. Pierre, insisting that he has another idea, kicks his warhorse in the flanks and urges it forward. The horse rears and gallops into the receiving hall, trampling one of the animated suits of armor and one of Maisy’s knights under hoof. Frieda screams, clutches Pierre, and loudly prays to Sigmar.

Sabina, Andre, and Garnier at last reach the reception hall. Quipping that “things are just as bad up here,” Garnier hurls himself at the nearest suit of armor, damaging it and giving the knights surrounding Lady Josephine a bit of breathing room.

At the same time, Magnus at last sees an opening and plunges his spear deeply into the baroness’ shoulder. She howls in agony and drops backward, a large chunk of her blood armor falling away. Magnus watches, horrified and fascinated, as the blood pouring from the devastating wound congeals around it into a new pauldron.

The warhorse that Pierre and Frieda are riding continues to gallop forward, crashing into the baroness and knocking her away from Magnus. This gives Maurice the opening he needs to fire on her. His arrow strikes true, bisecting the meat of the baroness’ left calf. Her leg armor shatters and the baroness falls screaming to one knee.

Sabina, not to be outdone, draws her pistol and fires, striking the baroness in her other knee. The baroness, overcome by her injures, collapses, her armor sloughing off of her in pieces.

She tries to rise, lifting her arms in supplication and begging Khorne to forgive her and give her the strength to fight onward. In answer, she is surrounded by a column of angry red light that strips her of both her armor and her waning vitality. Naked and dead, the baroness of Maisy collapses on the floor before Magnus, never to rise again.

With the death of their mistress, the last of the animated suits of armor stumble, rattle, and fall into disordered pieces. Pierre leaves his now calm horse to graze in one of the receiving hall’s flowerbeds as he rushes over to tend to the trampled knight. The rest of the company gather in the receiving hall to discuss what happened and to plan for what must inevitably come next.

Session Nineteen: The Man of Law's Tale

Defiling the Shrine

You Can Desecrate Chaos Shrines as Much as you Want!

Magnus takes one of the rust and blood-encrusted great swords for his own use. Sir Henri takes the banner and rolls it up around its support pole. The others tip the cauldron over, spilling blood and numerous human bones onto the floor. Pierre notices that at least two, and likely more, human beings contributed the remains to the cauldron. The company proceeds to dump oil on the spreading pool and ignite it, filling the shrine with foul, black smoke.

The company makes for the stairs. Magnus, in the lead, hears someone praying fervently out in the shrine of the Lady. He creeps out and discovers that the shrine’s occupant is Lady Josephine, who is dressed in riding leathers and armed with a saber. He interrupts her prayer and manages to convince her that she had missed seeing him when she first entered the shrine. Magnus also convinces her that he is both lost and afraid of the dark, and asks her to escort him back to his temporary chambers. She relents and accompanies him. Magnus thinks that she likes him a great deal.

Once the lady has been led away, the rest of the company enter the Lady’s shrine and seal the door behind them, but not before Sir Henri chips some stone off of the stairwell wall. Now that they know that the valley is secretly beset upon with ruinous dark forces, the company decides to gather allies. They plan to ride first for Saint Jacqueline’s shrine and then to Grandcamp, in the hopes that they can convince people to join with them.

Magnus, realizing that the company is leaving without him, quits his bedchamber and joins them in their journey.

A Rag-Tag War Host

The faithful at Saint Jacqueline’s shrine are easily swayed by the company’s words and by the sight of the banner of Khorne. They promise to march with the company and provide religious support to their deeds. The company also informs Constance that someone in the baroness’ household is not only a devotee of Khorne, but is also likely behind the poisoning of the knights. At this, Constance requests to be broken out of the wall so that she can lend her strength to the company’s.

Constance, Freed at Last!

The now much larger group travels north to Grandcamp, where they are admitted and escorted to the castle’s receiving hall. There, they meet with Baron Stephane, Lord Alexandre, and Lady Valerie. The company explains what they have discovered, show off the sigil of Khorne, and request Grandcamp’s aid. The baron savors the delicious irony of marching to Maisy as a liberator instead of a conqueror and accepts. He asks Alexandre and his knights to join him, but orders Lady Valerie to stay behind.

Andre, who is still convinced that the baron—or someone in his retinue—is a vampire, surreptitiously cuts himself with his knife just prior to entering the receiving hall. During the discussions, he reveals his injury, which surprises his companions and draws looks of concern from the baron and his household. Dismayed that none of the nobles show an unrelenting desire to feast upon his blood, Andre allows Pierre to bandage him. Baron Stephane, seeing the quality of Pierre’s surgeon’s bag, offers up one of his fine handkerchiefs to dress the wound. Pierre and Andre exchange glances when they realize that the baron’s handkerchief is bright red in color.

In the village of Grandcamp, Garnier and several others incite its people to action against Maisy. Realizing that a Chaos purge is imminent, many of the Grandcamp locals gather up pitchforks and torches to storm Maisy.

Those in the company who have no horse of their own are given one by Baron Stephane. Though they realize that this is likely temporary, the company (Renee and Magnus, specifically) hope that they can keep theirs for the duration of the pilgrimage.

The March on Maisy

With a host consisting of the priests of Saint Jacqueline’s shrine, the locals of Grandcamp, and the knights and leaders of Grandcamp, the company returns to Maisy. On the way, Magnus meets and befriends Sir Maximillian, seemingly the leader of the Grandcamp knights. Sir Maximillian is quite pleased at the chance to finally fight the knights of Maisy, and hopes that the imminent battle will give him the chance to get in, “a real good scrap.”

Word of the host reaches Maisy ahead of them, and the company finds the castle gates closed and guards swarming atop the walls. Baron Stephane levies the charges of Chaos worship against Maisy and demands that Baroness Louise be brought out to the parapets so that she may answer them. After much running back and forth, the guards of Maisy say that they must fetch Lady Josephine instead, as the baroness is, “currently indisposed.”

While this is going on, Andre, Sabina, and Garnier slip around to the back of Maisy and locate the culvert that allowed Constance to escape the castle. There they watch and wait, making sure that Maisy’s forces aren’t exiting the culvert in preparation of a sneak attack.

Lady Josephine does not take the accusations well. She loudly berates the company for pretending friendship, only to use the opportunity to betray Maisy and unite its enemies against it. Sir Henri attempts to reason with Lady Josephine, swearing to her that he has proof of his accusations. He asks that the company be let inside so that he can show her the truth.

After some back and forth, Lady Josephine relents. She permits Sir Henri, Magnus, Maurice, Pierre, Renee, Jim, Jules, Frieda, and several priests to enter the castle and deliver their proof while under heavy guard.

Lady Josephine, Appalled at the Accusations

Proof and Accusations

Sir Henri and his companions, under heavy guard, show the banner of Khorne to Lady Josephine. She is not convinced, however, which forces Sir Henri to lead her to the secret door in the castle’s shrine to the Lady. Here, Sir Henri takes the chip he had earlier struck from the staircase wall and replaces it, thereby proving that he has been in this area before. He then asks that the lady and her knights accompany him below.

The lady and her knights are horrified to see the shrine to Khorne, even in its defiled state. The priests who have accompanied Sir Henri begin to pray most fervently, asking the Lady to cleanse the baleful shrine of its Chaotic influence.

Lady Josephine quickly recovers from her shock and grows wroth. She says that her mother has much to answer for, and orders that her knights come with her while she seeks out the baroness. Magnus, absolutely lovestruck by Lady Josephine, accompanies her.

Meanwhile, out in the back of the castle, Sabina, Andre, and Garnier all hear unpleasant noises issuing up from the other end of the culvert. Creeping forward, they soon realize that what they hear is ritualistic chanting in an ugly, almost obscene language. The trio signal the army and order them to march to the rear of the castle and into the culvert. Those on horseback must dismount before they continue within.

As they progress into the lower levels of Castle Maisy, a frantic Josephine learns from one of her household guard that the baroness has holed herself up in the receiving hall. Josephine runs to the hall and, with Magnus and her knights in tow, throws open the doors and storms inside. There, she finds the Baroness Louise seated on the baronial throne.

Lady Josephine upbraids her mother, accusing her of serving the Ruinous Powers and for murdering ten of Maisy’s knights. The baroness listens to these accusations with seeming boredom before making a strange gesture with her hand. At this, the doors out of the receiving hall swing shut with loud and ominous booms.

Laughing, the baroness rises from her throne.

The Audience Hall of Castle Maisy

Session Eighteen: The Man of Law's Tale

Alexandre Arrives

Pierre begins tending to Maurice’s arm, but doesn’t get very far before the door to the chambers flies open and Lord Alexandre enters, followed by a rotund man in robes and two guards. Alexandre, out of breath and in a panic, seems to think that it was Lady Valerie who was dangling from the window. Although he is relieved that it wasn’t her, he is disturbed to find that Sir Henri and his party are still within the castle.

The rotund man, whom Alexandre introduces as Dr. Poitier, talks shop with Pierre while the latter continues to work on Maurice. Sir Henri hints that it was Lady Valerie who brought them to the tower, and more or less says that, if he and his party are discovered by Baron Stephane, that he would prefer to take all the blame for trespassing rather than have any of it fall on her.

Lord Alexandre seems quite fine with this, but is also insistent that the party leave at once, if not sooner. He begins to ramble about how very bad it would be for everyone if Baron Stephane learned that Sir Henri and his friends were not only hanging about the castle, but also a floor down from the scene of the murder in Lord Alexandre’s old chambers.

Pierre announces that, now that Maurice has been tended to, they can freely depart. Sir Henri attempts to give a silver coin to Dr. Poitier for his services, only to have his generosity rebuffed by Lord Alexandre. The baronet informs Sir Henri that Dr. Poitier is the household physician and is paid quite a considerable sum, thank you very much. Dr. Poitier, for his part, is crestfallen.

Moments later, the group is all but thrown out of the castle gates. Night has fallen over the valley, and the group contemplate their next move.

Lurking About Maisy, Part One

Sabina and Andre visit the kitchen to talk to Ines. They find her much more talkative, if still somewhat sharp-tongued. Ines is both grateful and surprised that Baroness Louise did not turn out or execute the kitchen staff in the aftermath of the poisoning. She goes on to say that the baroness wanted everything to be perfect for the dinner party for Constance. Ines thinks that this is in part because the baroness prides herself as a hostess, and in part because she wanted to rub the fact that she was housing Constance in the face of Grandcamp. Ines says that the baroness even came to the kitchen herself to see to the preparation of the meal, which Ines notes was unusual.

Upstairs, Garnier chats with Dame Jeanne. The knight informs him, in clipped terms, that yes, all of the knights have angered the baroness at one time or another, but that those who were at the party had either wronged her most recently or were multiple offenders. She also says that, in the baroness’ opinion, the knights at the party were the weakest of Maisy’s knights.

“But what’s weird,” says Jeanne, “is what she did with their armor.”

Dame Jeanne of House Maisy

Garnier prods her on this point, and learns that local custom is to bury all fallen knights with their armor and other equipage. Instead, the baroness buried the knights without any gear at all, and set up their armor in her receiving hall, presumably as some kind of memorial. Dame Jeanne no longer likes going into the receiving hall and finds the display of the armor of her dead compatriots to be especially ghoulish.

Dame Jeanne departs for her own quarters as Sabina and Andre return. The three of them compare notes, decide to let Magnus sleep off his rich meal, and resolve to explore Castle Maisy—first separately, then together. Frieda stays behind to watch over Magnus.

A Return to the Shrine

Outside Castle Grandcamp, Sir Henri notices his two squires are engaged in a rather heated discussion. He butts in to ask what’s going on and is told by Jim that he’s trying to convince Jules to tell “good Sir ‘Enri,” something that he noticed. When pressed, Jules mentions that he is pretty sure that he saw a concealed door in the walls of Lord Alexandre’s old chambers. He quickly adds that he doesn’t know how to open it, or where it goes, but he’s definitely probably sure there is a door there. The group file this information away, hoping that they will be able to re-enter Grandcamp later.

Pierre suggests to Sir Henri that they travel south to Maisy to see how the others are doing. Sir Henri agrees, but says that he would first like to stop at the shrine to speak to Constance.

Constance is first surprised to see the group and is then heartened to learn that Sir Henri and the others are working hard to clear her name. She becomes even more hopeful when she learns, from Sir Henri, that Lady Valerie still likes her and thinks she’s innocent.

Pierre shows Constance the bloodied kerchief, and asks if she ever saw anyone in Grandcamp with a similar one. She admits that she’s never seen anything like that before. Sir Henri, who has been curious about something ever since first becoming embroiled in this mystery, then asks Constance how she escaped both Grandcamp and Maisy.

Constance replies that, when she was imprisoned in the dungeons at Grandcamp, Lady Valerie took pity on her and released her. The young noblewoman also took care to reposition and distract the household guards, so that Constance could leave through the castle gate.

Being imprisoned at Maisy was another matter entirely, and Constance was sure that she was going to be executed once the baroness recovered. However, before that happened, Lady Josephine was able to rise from her sickbed, released Constance, and escorted her down into the lower levels of Maisy. There, she showed Constance the culvert that ran beneath the castle and told her which way to go to escape. Constance admits that Lady Josephine didn’t seem to like her very much and had no real motive to do this.

Confused, and with yet more questions, Sir Henri promises Constance that the company will continue to try and exonerate her. He and his friends then proceed to Maisy.

All in All, Constance is Still Just Stuck in the Wall

Lurking Around Maisy, Part Two

Andre prowls around an upper floor walkway that overlooks the courtyard. Seeing a guard, he hides himself and waits. A moment later, Lady Josephine, who has just finished her practice in the yard, happens to pass buy. The guard rather forwardly asks if the lady is all right, as he suspects that she has gotten into another fight with her mother. Lady Josephine upbraids the guard for his overfamiliarity and strides off to her chambers.

Under the pretext of checking on her horse, Hellbitch, Sabina crosses the courtyard to snoop around. She sees the aftermath of Lady Josephine’s training session, including a dagger shoved through a sturdy board. Recalling that the final deathblow to Baronet Arthur had been a dagger blow through his sternum, she begins to grow suspicious.

Between them, Garnier, Andre, and Sabina locate the castle crypts, the reception hall, and the chapel to the Lady. They decide to search the crypts first. They descend the steps and find a lantern hanging on a hook just outside the entrance to the crypts, which they take and light. Upon entering, they find the sarcophagi of the baroness’ ancestors, as well as ten temporary coffins made out of wood. The lids on all the coffins are nailed shut, but Andre easily pries one open with his dagger.

The body within the coffin is seemingly naked and wrapped tightly in a winding sheet. Andre lifts the body and Garnier holds the lamp as Sabina unwinds the sheet to get a look at the corpse. The dead knight beneath is already decaying. He bears awful, claw-like marks on his neck and across his eyes. He is also unnaturally pale and withered, and seems to be devoid of blood.

Andre, who grew up in Kislev and has heard all manner of terrible folk tales, immediately suspects vampires. He begins to relate his opinions to the others, who only become more nervous. Garnier insists that they unwrap the rest of the body and, when they do, he bends to inspect every inch of the dead knight’s flesh. He finds no other wounds or puncture marks other than the injuries on the neck and face, but he realizes that none of these injures would have caused the knight to lose all of his blood.

The group then hears a quiet tread on the stairs leading down to the crypt. They stuff the corpse back into the coffin, push the lid down as best as they are able, and douse the lantern, before hiding in between the sarcophagi. Their alarm is more or less for nothing, as whoever came down the stairs reaches for the lamp, doesn’t find it, and, with a huff, proceeds back up the stairs.

The Reception Hall

Thanking the Lady for their good luck, Garnier, Andre, and Sabina wait a few moments before leaving the crypts and heading up the stairs. Andre and Garnier suspect that whoever nearly entered the crypt will probably come back, and so they both wind up hiding in a too-small alcove to wait for their return. Sabina has had enough of crypts, and says that she will search the receiving hall and return to see how Magnus and Frieda are doing.

Leaving her companions behind, Sabina finds and enters Castle Maisy’s large and ornate reception hall. There, she sees the armor of the ten dead knights standing on pedestals, though the arrangement feels less to Sabina like a memorial and more like trophies. She hesitantly approaches to inspect the armor and finds that most suits have bloodstains on the inside.

She quickly departs for the sleeping quarters.

A “Chance” Meeting

Andre and Garnier do not have to wait long before Lady Josephine comes down the hallway, holding a small lantern. The duo watch from their hiding space as the lady begins to descend into the crypt. At this moment, Andre steps out to confront Lady Josephine, who accuses him and Garnier of snooping. Garnier insists that they were just walking around the castle that they were guests in, and ask what Josephine was doing.

A frosty moment follows and Lady Josephine excuses herself. It is clear to Garnier that she was up to something, but also that she will not tell anyone else that she found Andre and Garnier near the crypts.

Andre and Garnier return to the sleeping quarters.

Lady Josephine, Caught Wandering at Night

Reunited

Sir Henri’s party arrives at Castle Maisy and, after some curt questions from the guards at the gate, are permitted to come inside and rejoin the others in the sleeping quarters. Garnier shoves Magnus awake before leaping back to avoid the knife that Magnus keeps under his pillow.

The company shares what they have learned with one another and discover that there are two hemophiliacs in the same valley. With this new knowledge in mind, Garnier and Magnus decide to re-interview the cook.

Ines is none too pleased to see Magnus again, but agrees to follow the duo into the hallway so that they can converse more privately. Garnier enters into a very intense conversation with Ines, in which he circumspectly remarks that he knows there’s someone else in the valley who suffers from Ines’ condition, and that Ines might want to know that this other person is living happily and well.

This upsets Ines so much that she drags both Garnier and Magnus into a kitchen storeroom to continue the conversation in double private. After some questioning, Ines tells Garnier that her blood condition is a Chaos mutation, which she inherited from her grandfather. Her grandfather worked for a noble several miles away from the valley and, when a young man, was ordered to help clean up an area that had been befouled by Chaos. The close contact caused her grandfather to become afflicted and change, “though not so anyone could see,” and the noble released her grandfather from his service so that he could find another place to settle and live the remainder of his life in peace.

Garnier is now fairly certain that Ines is Valerie’s biological mother, though a later conversation with Sabina creates a new possibility: That Ines was Valerie’s wet nurse, and that she passed her Chaos mutation to Valerie through her milk. In either case, there is a connection between the two noble houses, though the reason for its obfuscation still remains a mystery.

Magnus, having heard about Andre’s talk about vampires, decides to test Ines by “accidentally” opening a sack and spilling several beans on the floor. He asks if Ines needs to count them obsessively to see how many there are. Annoyed, she shoos both men out of the storage room and grabs a broom.

The Chapel

The company reconvenes. Magnus asks if there is a chapel in the castle, as he suspects that vampires would not leave such a place of worship unmarred if they could help it. Sabina, having found the way to the chapel before, leads the group to it.

The chapel is small, peaceful, and properly adorned for the worship of the Lady. While most of the company feel better standing in it, Sir Henri once again feels the strange “attention” he experienced around Guillaumette at the Truce Inn. Renee’s injured arm begins to itch most fearsomely.

A quick search of the chapel reveals a locked door concealed behind one of the room’s thick draperies. Frieda is once again called upon to pick the lock, which she does without difficulty. The entire company produces lanterns and torches before disappearing down the spiral staircase beyond the door.

They soon end up in a small chamber that reeks of a sickly sweet, coppery odor. In the center is a large cauldron, filled nearly to the rim with clotted blood. On the opposite wall, two large, rust-encrusted blades hang on either side of a banner that bears a strange symbol featuring the snarling heads of two wolves. Frieda consults her notebook and tells the company that this is one of the symbols of Khorne, the Chaos God of war, hatred, martial skill, and blood.

Blood for the Blood God™